LIFE ON A BIKE

Just call me a Tri Sheep

2012-01-11T12:36:00.005-05:00

I'm now one of the herd. One of the mindless sheep who can't make decisions for themselves. Well, the latter statement is definitely not true for me but anyone who buys a Cervelo is viewed as such.

I decided after the Marines Ironman World Championship 70.3 to sell my Scott Plasma and buy a new tri bike that actually fit me. In hindsight, I wanted to buy a Cervelo back in 2009 but the shop I was racing for at the time was not an authorized reseller for Cervelo and they offered me a sweetheart deal on the Scott or so I thought. After removing all of the spacers and adding a very, negative drop stem the Scott was still not the best choice for me. Todd Kenyon at ttbikefit.com helped me out immensely and got me as aero and comfortable as possible. I highly recommend Todd and his fitting service and have referred many triathletes who are much happier and producing higher watts after working with Todd.

Why a tired brand and model like Cervelo when there are other "super" bikes out there? I'm not convinced that the Trek SC or Specialized Shiv TT is that much more aero than a Cervelo P3. Maybe talking a 3' savings over the course of an ironman leg. Really??? There is a reason why Cervelo has dominated the Kona count year after year and continues to produce World TT champions. Let's not forget that the motor has to move the bike and based on my 2011 results, my motor produced numerous podiums on a not so aero bike so moving to the Cervelo P3 should produce faster times and even better results!

Tried to find a P4 on close out but had no luck. Did go with the 2012 P3 as it had a 3T Aura Pro carbon base bar. I did upgrade the crank to the Quarq SRAM 975 powermeter as I can't live without power. Also added a Black Box Ceramic bottom bracket. Decided to switch to the Adamo Road saddle versus staying with the Cobb V-Flow Max and I'm glad I did. Immediate comfort and much better than the Cobb in my opinion. Highly recommend you try this saddle. If you do, make sure you mount the saddle with the rails horizontal and not the top of the saddle. The latter will cause you a lot of pain and discomfort. also, give it 2 weeks or 5 to 6 rides as it will take the skin on your sit bones some time to build up the callouses. Purchased vinyl name labels from Victory Circle Graphics and am very pleased. They provide name labels for some of the top professional teams in the peloton so you won't be disappointed.

For race day, I plan to use my Zipp 900 clincher disk and Zipp 808 clincher front wheel. Could gain a few seconds by switching to a Zipp FC 808 for the front but not worth the investment in my opinion.

Bike rides like it is on rails and is probably one of the best bikes I've ridden for power transfer. Had some issues with the seat post slipping but I think that was due to the bike shop forgetting to add carbon assembly paste and blue Loctite to the threads of the bolts. Did purchase a fixed torque wrench to make sure the seat post in torqued to 4Nm before every ride. Make sure you add the blue Loctite to the bolts for the arm pads as they loosened up pretty quickly without it.

Water Under the Bridge

2011-12-05T15:28:00.019-05:00

Total time: 5:14:41 - 537 out of 1505

It's been 84 days since the Marines Ironman World Championship 70.3 which means enough time has passed for me to move on - water under the bridge. We say "water under the bridge" to refer to past experiences and conflicts which we have decided to forget. I know, I should be happy with finishing. I left a lot out on the course that day and no matter how many times I play Monday Morning Quarterback, the outcome stays the same.

In reading Dave Jewel's blog, he posted a pic that gives me hope.

"Failure Leads to Success if you let it. If you let failure get you down you will stay down. But if you learn from your failure you will grow. I can tell you that I hope to fail often in the future."

Dave is right. I learned a lot from the race and the prep before it that will help me in the future, not to mention the next time I qualify/race the World Championship.

Now for the race report.

My training over the last 4 weeks prior to the race were hit and miss. I traveled pretty much every week up to race week and therefore, my bike and swim training really suffered. Was able to recon the bike and run course 2 weeks prior which did help and gave me a taste of what the temperature could be on race day. 2 weeks out, the temperature at 10:00AM was around 105F and 115F at 11:00AM when we finished the run. Living in SC, I'm used to the heat and humidity so I was hoping for a hot race day as this would be a field separator.

We landed on Thursday and headed over to packet pick-up and the race expo. Pretty uneventful but did hook up with the Profile Design rep who hooked me up with some warranty replacement aero carbon bars. We stayed at the Hampton Inn and Suites about 2 miles from the finish which worked out well but if I ever go back, I will get a room at the Green Valley Ranch. Very close to the race finish and the District for shopping, eating, etc. The race host hotel was great for the pre-race meetings/dinner/awards ceremony but not for much else. Over priced and isolated from civilization.

Slept pretty well the night before the race which isn't usually the case. Should've realized this was a sign that I was too relaxed and didn't have my game face on so to speak. A cold front moved in Saturday afternoon/evening which did bring a little rain on the way to the start but did clear out until Monday evening.

With the race being on September 11, the organizers did a great job with scheduling in a moment of silence at the exact time the first plane hit the WTC. I was very impressed that everyone was silent during this time and just shows you what an impact that act of terror had on the world and not just the US.

SWIM

Ok, here is where my frustration starts. I'm at best, a MOP swimmer so going into this race I knew I would come out of the water with a deficit. Didn't realize just how big it would be. The race officials said the water temp was too warm to be wet suit legal so you had the option of the new fabric swim skin or just your race kit. I ended up wearing the new swim skin from Blue Seventy which was OK, as it was too tight around the neck. The luck of being between a S and a M. The 40-44 wave was 4th from the end so I knew I would have a lot of people out on the course ahead of me and very few behind me. A through L's were off first and as soon as the canon went off, they were telling us to get into the water. Man that water was cold. The Europeans were complaining at the water temp and said there was no way it was not wet suit legal. I agreed with them but not much I could do. Over 50% of my wave ended up climbing up on rocks under bridge to get out of the cold water as we had 10' of treading water before they shot the canon.

Mistake #1. Allowing your draft to get away. I decided I would let everyone take off and then start my swim. Wanted clean water or at least that's how I justified my poor decision. Note to self. Never do this again. The large group could've helped drag me along the course with less effort.

1.2 miles - 43:36

Yes, you read that correctly. Should've been 35' or less. Nothing like a leisurely Sunday swim.

T1: 4:14 - About 2' slower than I expected. There was about a 400 yd run around the back of the lake to get into T1 and an uphill bike exit with switchbacks that added some time. I also had difficulty buckling my Garmin, had to remove my swim skin, and had to stop and put on sunscreen.

Bike

The first 2 miles leaving the resort area are uphill. Nothing like burning a match or two a few minutes into the bike ride. Legs felt dead for the first 40 miles. Once out on the main road to Lake Meade Park, the speed and wind started picking up. I hit 46 mph heading into the entrance of the park and this gave me an opportunity to catch my breath. The plan was to keep the wattage at around 208W for the 56 miles. On the first hill, people were blowing past me like I was standing still. I was tempted to follow suit but knew I would pay for it on the run.

Started the bike with (2) 24oz bottles of my home brew. Drank 1.5 bottles by the turn around at which point I ditched my second bottle and grabbed a cold Perform and a bottle of water.

On the bike you are either going up or going down. Probably needed an 11-27 versus the 11-25, especially with standard size cranks. Saw very little drafting - maybe a pack of 4. The last few miles just before the park exit wore on me as I was ready to get back on the main road towards T2.

The last 10 to 12 miles appear to be flat but in reality, you are going up a 2% grade all the way to T2. There were a lot of tired people at this point and many who were drafting and sitting up on their base bars. My legs actually started coming around at this point and I managed to pass quite number of people during this time.

56 miles - 2:42:33 - 20.7 mph (Pavg 212W)

Rolled into T2 and handed my bike off to a volunteer. Grabbed my run bag and headed to the tent.

T2 - 2:05

RUN

When I started the bike, I needed to make a bathroom stop. Unfortunately, this didn't happen and rode the next 56 miles with a full bladder. My only thought starting the run was to hit a bathroom. First aid station and porta potty was at mile 1. Ran the first mile in 7:03 and then took over a minute in the bathroom. Run was pretty uneventful and made the on the spot decision to walk the aid stations to make sure I got the fluids down. Wasn't part of the plan and probably cost me around 4'. The course is 3 laps - 2 miles up and 2 miles down. On the down hills I ran the same pace as the up which didn't register to me as being a mistake until the last 2 miles of the race at which point I ran a pace of 5:53/mile.

13.1 miles - 1:42:14 - 7:48 pace

Total time: 5:14:41 - 537/1505

2011 Tri! Ballantyne Triathlon

2011-07-22T14:12:00.002-04:00

Headed up to Charlotte with the family on Friday so the girls could take part in the 2nd Annual Tri! Kids Ballantyne Triathlon on Friday evening. Kids had a great time and the event was well run and we will be back next year.

It rained on and off Friday night and was raining Saturday AM when we headed over to the race start. I dropped the air in my tires to compensate for the rain but as my luck would have it, the rain moved out and the race course was basically dry. I left my pump in the hotel room which had the crack pipe for the rear disk so I was unable to inflate my tires to the right pressure which probably cost me some time. I say this as I was 25" slower this year versus last.

SWIM

Horrible. That pretty much sums it up. The off season this year will be filled with pool time and lessons as I cannot continue to give away time to the other competitors.

300M - 5:36 with run to T1 (2010 - 5:29)

T1 - 0:53 - too long. Almost my entire rack came out within 45" of one another and caused a traffic jam. (2010 - 0:56)

BIKE

Uneventful. Already bummed about under-inflated tires and then I ran up on the SAG vehicle right before a right hand turn. I had to sit up and wait for the vehicle to turn thinking it would either speed up or move to the side. It did neither. I waved my arms and finally yelled for the drive to MOVE IT at which time he/she floored the vehicle and finally got out of my way. This is where I lost the race as this delay easily cost me the 28" I needed to take 1st overall.

12.7 miles - 31:50 @ 24mph (2010 - 31:25 @ 24.25mph)

T2 - 0:29 - Much better. Decided to not wear socks for the bike/run and this helped my time in T1. I also put on my race belt in T1 which may have cost me a few seconds but probably a wash with what I made up in T2. (2010 - 0:39)

RUN

Goal was to break 20:00 for the 5K and I came up short by 1". I felt great during the entire run and was in the zone for the last mile. Didn't wear my Garmin so ran on feel.

5K - 20:00 @ 6:26/mile (2010 - 20:20 @ 6:32/mile)

Overall

58:47 - 2nd Place Overall (out of 425+) (2010 Result - 58:47 - 4th place overall)

2011 Tri the Midlands Race Report

2011-06-28T08:48:00.004-04:00

Woke up Saturday morning feeling tired due to lack of sleep - thanks to the University of South Carolina in the CWS and from a long run on Thursday. Expectations were low as I'm starting my build for the Ironman® World Championship 70.3 in September and have been focusing on distance/time in the saddle or on the road versus short course speed. The transition area was moved this year as was the swim start. Swim exit was the same but due to the change in transition location, you had a longer run – 300yds from what they said from swim finish to T1.

SWIM

Haven’t been feeling very strong on the swim and that is concerning as I’m a MOP swimmer. Decided to let everyone go ahead of me when the horn sounded and just swim easy. First buoy was at 175m and after this turn, the field was separated and made for a nice swim to the finish.

500M with 300yd run to T1 – 11:10 (10 out of 28 in age group)

51” – Obviously wasn’t in a hurry here.

BIKE

Finally, a race where the participants followed the rules and stayed right unless they were passing. Not much to say here except there was a nice head wind once you turned right on Kelly Mill Rd and again when you re-entered Lake Carolina on Lake Carolina Dr. Used my new Louis Garneau Vorttice helmet and really enjoyed the visor and not having to crane my neck to see over my glasses. Will look into getting an amber visor to wear in longer races where the sun will be a factor. The helmet was very quiet and air flow was much better than my Giro Advantage 2. The helmet really made you conscience of keeping your head up as looking down and sticking the tail of the helmet in the wind made a loud noise, disturbing the airflow. With transition moving closer to the lake, this gave you a little more time to open things up on the flat to downhill stretch of Long Pointe Lane. Hit 38mph passing by the finishing chute and carried a good bit of speed down to the dismount line.

14.6 miles (14 miles advertised) – 37:25 – 23.4mph (fastest in age group and 11^th overall)

1:00 – Decided to run without socks this race and it cost me 20” in T2. My toe kept getting caught on one of the tongue bands when I tried putting on my shoes. After 3 attempts, I finally got one shoe on.

RUN

Legs still felt dead after Thursday’s long run. Just didn’t have the quick turnover. Got passed by the 10^th OA competitor just before the hill, and then passed again 0.25 miles from the finish by the 15^th OA guy who ran a 17:17 5K.

5K – 21:10 (2^nd in age group and 26^th OA)

1:11.34 was good enough for 1st place in the 40-44 age group and 17th overall.

2011 Turtle Crawl Sprint Triathlon at Jekyll Island

2011-05-23T11:57:00.009-04:00

Spent the week touring the Golden Isles with the family and capped off a great time with winning the 2011 Turtle Crawl Sprint Triathlon at Jekyll Island on Saturday.

SWIM

Weather was perfect and the swim conditions were ideal – no chop in the ocean and almost like a lake. Water temp was 76ºF so it was a wetsuit legal race but due to the short distance, I opted for my BlueSeventy speed suit. The 40+ males started 3’ behind the 39- males so I knew there would be some congestion to contend with on the bike course as I’m at best, a MOP swimmer. At any given time, you could stand up during the swim and were only chest deep which is great for new swimmers or people with a fear of water. No excuse during the swim other than only being in the pool 1X during the past 14 days and 7X since Ironman® New Orleans on 4/17.

400M Swim with long run to T1: 8:49

T1: 1:30 – had some difficulty getting my socks on.

BIKE

Bike was originally supposed to be 12 to 13 miles but due to construction on the island, they had to change the course and cut it back to 9.3 miles. Bike was uneventful and had to pass quite a bit of people due to my lousy swimming. No matter how many times you tell people to stay right except to pass they always migrate to the center of the lane and make it difficult for the faster riders passing 2 and 3 wide without crossing over the center line. Also found it amusing to see people on high end bikes and deep dish carbon wheels in long course bike mode – slow and steady with a low cadence. Come on people, this is a Sprint not an Ironman®. Ride like you are in a hurry!

9.3 miles – 22:42 @ 24.6mph and PAvg of 258W – fastest bike split

T2: 0:55

RUN

When I got into transition, I only saw 2 bikes racked and 1 in the process of being racked. It didn’t register that I was in the top 3 or 4 to start the run. I and another racer left T2 at the same time. I quickly passed him and passed another racer at about 0.75 miles. At the turnaround, I estimated I was 250’ behind the leader with 1.6 miles to go. I ended up passing him at mile 2 and surged to keep him from hanging on my heels. Come to find out, he started in the earlier wave so I had at least a 3' lead on him once I passed him. I think I caught everyone by surprise as they were a little frazzled when I came down the finish line as I had to dodge a woman with a baby stroller and a man with a dog in the last 500’. Once I came through, they cleared the path so the other finishers would not have to contend with the obstacles.

5K: 20:37 or 6:38/mile - fastest run split

Total: 54:35 - Overall Individual Male – 1^st Place.

Will definitely be back next year to defend my title and hopefully, will be in better swim shape.

2011 Ochsner Ironman® 70.3 New Orleans Race Report

2011-04-22T16:18:00.009-04:00

Correction - 2011 Ochsner Ironman® 69.1 New Orleans

Got into New Orleans just after lunch on Friday and hit the athlete packet pick-up and expo before heading out for 30’ run to open up the legs. The wind was incredible and several gusts actually moved you back a step or two. The packet pickup was one of the best I’ve attended and you moved through the line/process fairly quickly. Dropped the bike off late Saturday afternoon at T1, which was just under 7 miles from the hotel / French Quarter. Did check out the lake and noticed the buoys outlining the course were not set-up. Should’ve realized this probably meant the swim would be canceled on race day. Didn’t get much sleep Saturday night due to the street noise in New Orleans. Probably should’ve requested a room on one of the top floors versus the 2^nd that we were on.

SWIM

Walking into T1 we heard the announcement that the swim had been canceled due to 25mph winds on the lake. Not an issue for those swimming but for those in kayaks trying to keep the swimmers safe. This was probably the best news I could’ve received race morning. See, I’m a MOP swimmer and a FOP biker and runner so this type of scenario suited me just fine.

BIKE

Waves of age groupers lined up 2 x 2 and were set off every 2”. Talk about the possibility of drafting. I was in line for the bathroom when they called my wave. Decided to wait it out as it didn’t make sense starting a 56 mile ride already needing to go.

First 3.6 miles were fast - 28+mph and it was almost impossible not to draft. We made the first turnaround and the wind hit you at a 45º angle. Pace slowed some but didn’t beat you up like a true headwind. Plan was to keep the wattage at around 210W for the race and ended up averaging 218W for the first 28 miles probably due to staying left and passing everyone I could in order to race clean - not draft. There was 1 blatant pace line where the participants actually tried to recruit me as they went by and unfortunately, they didn't get busted for drafting. Their decision beat me by 1'54". I'm OK with this as I know I raced clean. Only saw 2 people in the penalty tent - so much for enforcing the rules.

First 28 miles - 1:16:48 @ 21.8 mph and 218W Pavg

Second 28 miles - 1:06:14 @ 25.2 mph and 207W Pavg

I dropped the wattage for the last 28 miles and focused on holding the 210W. This probably cost me a podium placing but I did set myself up for a great run. Hit 37.4mph in mile 55. Roads were fine for the most part but organizers should’ve marked pot holes or uneven surfaces with paint. Coming over the last bridge to mile 55, you pick up a huge tailwind and must make a sharp right hand turn. Could’ve been better marked but probably a good idea to take this turn sitting up versus aero. Goal for the ride was 2:20.

Time: 2:23:28 - 23.4 mph PAvg – 213W and NP of 219W

T2: 1:55"

RUN

Coming off the bike my legs felt like jello and the run in T1 helped to get me going for the next 13.1 miles. The run course was shaded fairly well and there were numerous aid stations that were well stocked with volunteers, drinks, food, gels, and sponges.

Mile splits were as follows:

Mile 1 - 7:05

Mile 2 - 7:12

Mile 3 - 7:08

Mile 4 - 7:12

Mile 5 - 7:11

Mile 6 - 7:13

Mile 7 - 7:12

Mile 8 - 7:12

Mile 9 - 7:09

Mile 10 - 7:09

Mile 11 - 7:10

Mile 12 - 7:23

Mile 13 - 7:18

Blister came up on the ball of my left foot at mile 6. Wasn’t that big of an issue until I got into the French Quarter where the roads were awful and planting was difficult with the blister. Didn’t have much of a kick at the end which was disappointing.

Time: 1:34:29 - 7:12/mile pace

Total time: 3:59:52 – good enough for 7^th out of 343 in the 40-44 age group and 112 out of 2300+.

Nutrition was spot on as I consumed (2) 24oz bottles of my home brew (500 calories of glucose, 3,176mg of NA, 160mg of K, and a little Kool-aid for flavor) plus 1 gel on the bike. For the run, I did a gel shot with water every odd mile through 9 and a cup of Perform for all of the even miles. No stomach issues whatsoever.

Was fortunate enough to get the first roll down spot for the Ironman® World Championship 70.3 in Las Vegas in September. Should be a course that suits my strengths – bike and run and the temperature should be to my advantage as well.

Will be racing for Team PR or ER® for the rest of the season and will represent them in Vegas at the World Championships.

Tri! Ballantyne - 1st place Masters and 4/380 OA

2010-07-10T21:49:00.007-04:00

Headed to Charlotte this morning at 4:40AM to race in the Tri! Ballantyne Sprint. 300M pool swim, 13.2 mile bike, and 5K run. Finished in 1st place for Masters and 4th place overall out of 380 participants. 3rd place beat me by 10" and 2nd place beat me by 23". Numerous places where I could've made up the 10 to 23".

SWIM

Felt pretty good during the swim. I can't tell you the number of people that underestimated their 100M swim time as people were breast stroking, hanging on to the walls, and having to pass 5 and 6 people. There were several times where lanes 4 and 5 were completely empty.

Time: 5:29 - includes 25" run to T1

T1 - 56" - took too much time - had problems getting my socks on my wet feet. Oh well.

BIKE

Bike was rolling and was advertised as 12 miles but my computer had 13.2. It was downhill the first 3 to 4 miles and then a gradual uphill until mile 10. I had the fastest bike leg for the entire race!

Time: 31:25 - 25.22mph

T2: 39"

RUN

I forgot to charge my Garmin and ended up having to leave it in T2 as it was completely dead. Another race without a timing device. My turnover was pretty good for the first 1.5 miles and slowed a bit due to some hills but I ended up picking up the pace again just after mile 2.

Time: 20:20 - 6:32/mile pace

My run times have come down quite a bit and probably due to all of the 3 - 4 x 1 miles @ threshold.

Total time: 58:47

Tri the Midlands Race Report

2010-06-30T22:42:00.012-04:00

Made the podium again this past weekend with a 2nd place finish in the 40-44 age group and finished 12th OA out of 387 participants.

SWIM

The swim is still my weakest event. I was 26 seconds faster over last year but still about 2' slower than where I should be.500M swim with 75 yard run to transition - 10:17 (4th out of 27 in AG)

T1: 1:14

BIKE

Felt pretty good on the bike and ended up taking 1' off my time over last year. Switched to a full carbon disk in the rear and an 80mm deep carbon wheel for the front versus 58mm deep for the front and my PowerTap wheel with wheel cover for the rear. Had the fastest time in my age group and 6th fastest overall. Averaged 24mph for the 14.4 miles.

Time: 36:39

T2: 51 seconds
RUN

The majority of this run is uphill with a long, steep section just before the turnaround. When I crossed the finish line I looked at my Garmin and saw 2.7 miles and not 3.1 miles. Turns out the people setting up the aid station at the turnaround did not go far enough up the hill.

18:33 for the 2.7 miles or 6:52/mile (2nd out of 27 in AG)

Total time: 1:07:33

Go Tri Sports Triathlon at Hilton Head Island

2010-06-07T14:15:00.009-04:00

Go Tri Sports Triathlon at Hilton Head Island was my first race of the year and my first mass start swim. I was hoping for a calm ocean swim with a nice current but instead got choppy water. I am definitely not a fan of mass start swims, especially with me not being a strong swimmer. I've finally come to realization that my wetsuit is too small in the top and restricting my stroke. I couldn't do more than 10 strokes without taking a break. In hindsight, I shouldn't have worn the wetsuit and won't next year.

500M swim 10:44

T1: 3:32 - Way too slow. Not sure what happened here except I didn't sprint through the Holiday Inn parking lot, etc like others did.

The bike was flat and fast. Pretty uneventful and finally, a race where the participants stay to the right unless they are passing. Averaged 24mph for the 12.8 miles. Had the fastest bike time in the 40-44 AG and 6th fastest overall.

12.8 miles in 31:53

T2: 0:36 - Very happy with this time

I decided not to wear a timing device for the race and I think it cost me some time on the run. I ended up running the 5K in 22:11 but was hoping for 21' or faster.

Finished 1:08:54 - 3rd AG and 19th OA.

Bike Workout

2010-01-07T13:26:00.006-05:00

I blogged yesterday that my workout today would consist of:

15' @ 185W, 40' @ 270W and 5'@ 285W - all continuous

I ended up doing 20' @ 201W, 10 @ 261W, 10 @ 272W, 10 @ 277W, and 10 @ 280W
**All watts listed are PAvg and not NP.

Duration: 1:00:16
TSS: 96.9
NP: 255
19.678 miles

For the 40' of continuous threshold work, my NP was 273W and Pavg was 272W. I feel confident enough to move my FTP in WKO+ from 260W to 270W starting tomorrow.

Getting things going again

2010-01-06T13:15:00.003-05:00

Plan for this year is to do all sprint distance events so I'm readjusting my training plan to reflect this change. Gone are the 2+ hour rides and 8+ mile runs. I'm implementing a modified Daniel's 5K to 15K running plan consisting of 2 or 3 quality days/week and will add 1 or 2 easy runs as bricks to get the miles. My body can't handle the abuse of running every day nor do I see a benefit for racing sprints. Goal for running is a 5K time of 19:15 or less.

For the bike, I'm strictly focusing on raising FTP and each workout will be no longer than 1 hour unless I'm doing a group ride. Goal is to be able to ride for 1 hour at 285+W or 20' @ 315+W. Today my HOP consisted of 15' @ 185W, 25' @ 235W, and 20' @ 282W all done as a continuous effort. Tomorrow I'll shoot for 15' @ 185W, 40' @ 270W and 5'@ 285W - again, all continuous.

Swimming distance will be cut back as well but not as much. Early focus will be on 10 x 50's with shorter rest periods between reps as the weeks go by and then move to 10 x 75's, and 5 x 100's as the season progresses.

New Sponsor for 2010

2009-10-11T12:16:00.005-04:00

Just received word that I will be a First Endurance sponsored amateur athlete for the 2010 season and am very excited about being associated with the leader in Innovative Racing Nutrients. What a great way to start the 2010 season and my second year in triathlon!

For more info on First Endurance and their innovative products, please click the logo to the right.

Ironman Augusta 70.3 Race Report

2009-09-28T14:04:00.009-04:00

When I signed up for this race, my goal was to finish the race under 5 hours. Prior to doing this race, my only other 2 triathlons were of the sprint distance so I was a little concerned with the 1.2 mile swim. As I learned, swimming in a pool is quite different than swimming in the open water. The Savannah River was 68F on race morning and I would shortly learn that it was full of reed grass and river plants that added just another element of "surprise" during the swim.

Swim

I was in the first wave of the 40-44 men and made the mistake of starting first instead of waiting for everyone else to take off in my wave and then follow in behind. In less than 5', I was anaerobic. My breakfast started tickling the back of my throat and the wetsuit of which I only swam 5' in a pool 7 days prior, felt as though it was getting tighter and made it that more difficult to breathe. At this point I flipped over on my back and did the backstroke until my heart rate came down and then flipped back over and tried freestyle again. I did this over and over and finally got into a groove about 2/3 of the way into the swim. I know I swam more than the 1.2 miles as I was zig zagging all over the place, especially when I was on my back. Ironically, it takes me about 400yds to get into a groove in the pool so I shouldn't have been surprised that it took quite a bit longer. Exiting the water my head was throbbing and the headache would not go away until I hit the run.

Time: 30:31 1:36/100m

If I would've swam the average time, I would have made up over 6'. Oh well, time to hit the pool.

T1:2:24

Uneventful. My wetsuit came off with no problem and I probably took my time a little too much as I wanted to make sure I had everything before heading out. Also, I have to ride with socks on so it took a little extra time getting these on wet feet.

Bike

Sitting in my hotel room Saturday night listening to the rain pour down, I knew I would have issues with my Powertap in the morning. Even though I had everything covered up, the change in temp and the moisture/humidity seems to cause problems. I hit the button on my Powertap computer and all I saw was dashes. Then a few seconds later after I hit a bump I would see numbers. This went on for the entire length of the bike ride and made it extremely difficult to pace correctly. I've trained exclusively on this bike since May and not one time did I experience a drop out so I can only attribute it to the rain.

Being the 3rd to the last group to head out, I had plenty of people on the bike course to contend with. People were riding in the middle of the road, would start to pass someone and then slow down and talk to the person they were passing, dropping tubes, bottles, inflators, etc and made for a difficult ride. With my Powertap dropping out and stopping for a bathroom break at mile 36, I ended up riding slower than I planned and left some time out on the course.

Time:2:35:02 21.7mph

T2:

Again, uneventful. Changed socks as I like to run in thin socks and I prelubed the insides with Body Glide so it took me a little extra time to get these on.

Time:2:10

Run

Plan was to start out at 8:10 for the first 3 miles and then drop it down to 7:40 for the next 7 and then 7:30 or faster for the remaining 3.1. I started fine and was running 8:07 until I hit the first aid station. I would slow down to a walk as soon as I grabbed a cup and would continue walking until I finished drinking. I would hit the lap button when I started running again so my pace would be right but for some reason (come to find out when I downloaded the info) my pace was actually slower than what was coming up on my watch. Maybe the buildings, trees, overpasses, etc that caused my Garmin to act strange but I didn't pace the run like I had planned.

Run Split 1: 7 mi 8:26/mi
Run Split 2: 6.1 mi 7:41/mi
Total Run: 13.1 mi 1:45:59 8:05/mi

I was able to negative split the run but would have anyway if I executed according to my plan.

Total time: 4:56:06 Rank 302 Div. POS 49

I met my goal of going under 5 hours. I had a second, unspoken goal of hitting 4:48 and would have if I executed the swim with an average time, didn't have the issues with the Powertap going in and out, and truer pacing #'s from the Garmin.

With this being only my 3rd triathlon and my first HIM, I couldn't be happier. You can always second guess yourself and replay the race over and over and figure out where you could've made up time but that would be a waste of time. I did short myself calories on the bike and only managed to get in about 43oz of carbohydrate drink and 22oz of water. I really should've consumed around 54oz of CHO drink but thankfully, everything went OK. No issues with cramps as I was taking a Succeed S-Cap every 30' on the bike and run and never had any GI issues.

I've got a few take aways that I'll file away for my next long course race but now, time to put the tri bike away and get back on the road bike.

Bike Set-up for Augusta 70.3

2009-09-25T16:39:00.002-04:00

Just need to lube the chain (rain in the forecast) and finish packing my gear and I should be ready to head out tomorrow for the race.

Video of entire Augusta 70.3 bike leg

2009-09-22T18:21:00.001-04:00

Pretty cool idea. You can view the entire bike leg through the windshield of car/motorcycle.

Video is here. Scroll to the bottom of the page.

400+ men in 40 - 44 for Augusta??

2009-09-21T14:03:00.004-04:00

Less Clydesdales:

35-39: 468
40-44: 432
45-49: 283

De Soto First Wave

2009-09-21T08:54:00.002-04:00

Tried out my De Soto First Wave wetsuit this morning and all I can say is WOW!! Pushing off the wall and gliding in the water was quite an experience. I have nothing to compare it to as this is my first time wearing a wetsuit but i was quite impressed. I chose this suit because of the 2-piece design so I could dial in the fit, better shoulder movement, and easy removal. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't make my legs sink and the body roll was amazing. I didn't time it but I banged out a 300 with very little effort.

Can't wait until Sunday!!

E. Coli in the Savannah River

2009-09-17T18:53:00.002-04:00

Nick aka Swimshady tweeted about this earlier today. How many of you have been doing swim training in the Savannah River getting ready for the Augusta race????

I'm not sure which is worse, the E.Coli or the gators.

Read here.

I hope a cold front comes through........

2009-09-17T11:05:00.000-04:00

Sunday, Sep 27
High: 86 °F RealFeel®: 105 °F
A shower in the morning; otherwise, times of clouds and sun, warmer and very humid

Let the taper begin

2009-09-14T17:48:00.004-04:00

Race is in 12 days and this week is the start of my taper. Volume has been slowly coming down - an hour here an hour there with a slight drop in intensity this week. Plan calls for 10:35 this week - Swim: 3:00, Bike: 4:00, and Run: 3:35. Next week drops to 7:20 with the race on Sunday!!

Getting the race wheels ready with new Michelin latex tubes today and should take delivery of my new tires tomorrow - Bontrager 19mm X Lite TT AW for the front Zipp 808 clincher and a Bontrager X Lite Pro 23mm rear on my Mavic OP rim with PowerTap and wheel cover. One of the lowest, rolling resistance combos for a clincher available. Should amount to 7 to 10W of savings per the smart guys over at ST.

Swim race rehearsal

2009-09-11T10:46:00.004-04:00

Plan called for 2100yds continuous at race pace. Ended up with a time of 35:52 or a T-Pace of 1:42/y. I'm pretty pleased with this result as I did this workout wearing my ultra hydrodynamic (right) suit from LL Bean, a pull buoy and no flip turns. I'll be wearing a full wet suit for the race and from what I've been reading, the river has a current so my time should be significantly better.

40' run later today and then a full race rehearsal on the bike and run tomorrow. 56 mile bike ride followed by a 6 mile run with the first 3 miles @ 8:10 and the second 3 at 7:40. My MP pace is actually 7:32 but I'm being a little conservative with this being my first HIM. Pacing for the race will be 3/7/3 with the first 3 at 8:10/mile, next 7 miles @ 7:40, and the final 3.1 miles @ whatever I have left - shooting for 7:14 or lower.

Legs feeling good!!

2009-09-03T11:19:00.004-04:00

3 weeks out and my legs are feeling pretty good. Yesterday called for 3 x 15' @ FTP with 4' rest in between. With little effort, I managed:

266W
260W
261W

I followed this up with a 30' brick run with 10' @ 8:48, 10' @ 7:14, and 10' @ 7:32.

Today called for a 1:45 run consisting of:

40' @ 8:48 - 8:20, 15' @ 7:32, 5' @ 7:14, 10' @ 7:55, 15' @ 7:32, 5' @ 7:14, and 15' @ 7:53. Finished with 13.1 miles in 1:44. Legs felt great for the entire run and overall, I liked running at the 7:32 versus the 7:55.

2100yds tomorrow and then 3.5 hours on the bike Saturday, 2 hours on Sunday with a 20' brick run.

Life=Risk

2009-08-30T08:13:00.001-04:00

Rode the Ironman Augusta 70.3 bike course

2009-08-29T16:52:00.005-04:00

Headed to "dis-gusta" early this morning to ride the bike course for the upcoming Ironman Augusta 70.3 on 9/27. There were at least 100 other people who had the same idea and some even swam the swim leg which is what I probably should've done.

The bike is mostly flat with a few gradual climbs and one short, steep grade just before turning right and heading back to Beech Island. Some pretty good down hills but a few have a slight head wind. Never had the need to stand during the climbs but did switch to my small chain ring a few times just because I was following a plan or race rehearsal and wanted to make sure I stayed under a certain wattage. Normally I would've stayed in the big ring and pushed the watts. Watch out for the cracks in the road on Pine Log Road as this is pretty much the only bad surface and it lasts for about 7 miles.

With the bike being mostly flat, it will cause people to go too hard and they will shell themselves for the run. Hence the reason for me sticking to a plan and throttling back the watts. Save it for the run as that is always where the race starts. Prove you could've gone harder on the bike by killing the run. However, for all of you reading this who are in the 40-44 AG, please ride like the wind, hammer the hills and plan your nutrition around a 70F day with 10% humidity. ;-)

Plan was to stay at 205W to 208W for the 56 miles and I believe I finished with 206W. Haven't downloaded the file yet but I think my time was around 2:33. I ended up running around 4.5 miles (3 @ 7:44 and 1.5 @ race pace of around 7:20) and not the 6 as the plan called for as it was just too hot and I didn't pack my Fuel Belt.

I'm bagging the Hartsville race next week and opting for another long bike ride and spending some time with my family at the beach house.

Hmmmmm......

2009-08-29T16:50:00.003-04:00

PowerTap Joule - here

6 x 3' @ 120% of FTP

2009-08-19T15:56:00.002-04:00

Plan called for 6 x 3' @ 120% of FTP aka Vo2 max intervals with the goal of not going over the 120% of FTP. About 2 months ago, I dropped my FTP on my tri bike down to 265W as I still can't generate the same power in my new, aero position as I was before the change. Ironically, I did an hour ride on my road bike 2 weeks ago and had no problem holding my old FTP. Not really concerned as I won't be riding anywhere near my FTP for the HIM and I'd rather be aero and fast versus being a sail and riding at a higher FTP.

Target was 318W and ended up with intervals of:

314W
310W
303W
313W
306W
306W

Finished with a 30' brick run with 10' @ 8:24, 10' @ 7:14, and 10' @ 8:03.

Tomorrow calls for a 2:15 run with 75' @ 8:48 to 7:40 and 2 x 20' (10') @ 7:32. I don't think I'll make the entire 2:15 as I'm supposed to stop when I hit 15 miles.

5 1/2 weeks to go

2009-08-17T19:59:00.005-04:00

Scheduled for 14.5 hours with 3 hours swimming, 6.5 hours biking, and 5 hours running. This is week 7 of 12 and is my biggest week of the plan. From here I'll start to slowly cut back the hours and do two race rehearsals with the second the Saturday before I start my 2 week taper.

My running has been going extremely well. I've started doing the 10':1' run /walk during my long runs on Thursday and it has made quite a difference in terms of how I feel that afternoon and the next day. For those interested, I'm following the Bobby McGee run / walk protocol. You can listen to an interview with Bobby here, where he explains the concept. Says that people running 2:30 marathons still see improvement in their times by using the run/walk system.

I've skipped my last 2 vdot tests just because I hate them and I don't want to injure myself. Instead, I've started increasing my mile pace during my 4 x 1 mile intervals and have taken off about 10" per mile. See, no need to do a 5K TT.

Headed to the beach this weekend for some flat land and major head winds and then off to Augusta next Saturday to ride the bike course of the upcoming 70.3

With all of the running I've been doing, my weight has dropped another 2lbs (down to 150lbs or 68.2kg) and my body fat is hovering around 7.5 to 8%. I just can't lay off the ice cream at night. I call it carbo loading for my early morning swims.

Performance

2009-08-12T16:27:00.005-04:00

I think there is a little of this guy in all of us.

Run - 1:42:00

2009-08-06T09:47:00.003-04:00

Thursday's are long run days and today called for a 1:45 run as follows:

WU: 60' at 8:48

MS: 1 x 10' @ 7:32

5' @ 8:48

2 x 10' @ 7:14 with 5' @ 8:48 in between

Ended up doing 12.1 miles @ 8:26 with an average HR of 134BPM.

I'm back!!

2009-08-05T09:57:00.003-04:00

My mojo has returned and just in time for a 14 hour week. Looking back, I think my family may have been passing around a virus that sapped my motivation, strength, will, etc.

My Wednesday bike workout has changed from FTP intervals to V02 max which I've been looking forward to for quite some time. I love to suffer for 1 to 5 minutes and prefer it to suffering at an effort 20 to 25% lower for 6 to 20 minutes. V02 work has always given me a boost to my training, especially when I feel as though I'm detraining or reached a plateau.

Ended up doing an hour ride this morning with 4 x 3' on 3' off @ 320W and then finished up with a 30' minute run with 10' @ 8:48, 10' @ 7:32, and then 10' @ 7:55.

Took my tri bike in and am having the crankset replaced with a compact - 50/36 as I really love the compact on my road bike and this will make running an 11-23 on the rear a little easier on those 5 to 8% grades that are sprinkled thoughout my training routes.

Temperature at 5:20 PM

2009-08-05T09:53:00.002-04:00

Got to love the warm summer evenings in the midlands of SC!!!!

Have you seen my Mojo?

2009-07-30T12:55:00.005-04:00

58 days before my A race and I'm feeling tired and out of shape. My FTP on the tri bike has dropped from an all time high in April (road bike) but seems to be holding steady for now. My VDOT has stayed the same pretty much all season but for good reason. I pulled my hamstring early on and any speed work really aggravated it so I stayed at the same level and recently dropped the pace by 10 seconds/mile and have been OK. The swim is getting better but will always be my weakest link.

It seems as though I go through this every season with April being my peak month and then I slowly slide down hill from there. This was definitely true when I was just road racing and appears to be the same now that I've switched to triathlons.

For the past 4 years, my training has always started the first week in January. After 12 weeks of intense workouts, I'm flying going into April/May and has me wondering do I really need a 38 week HIM plan or could I get away with a 16 or 20 week plan, made up of my outseason and race prep. One other note, is that I always respond well to V02 work, especially when I do it before the longer FTP intervals. I did V02 intervals for the first 2 months of my 2008 season and then added FTP intervals and saw the biggest FTP gains to date. In addition, I was able to maintain the high FTP throughout the entire season. This season, I started with a different plan that had me doing FTP intervals for 9 weeks and then added V02 for 5 weeks and I was again flying after the 5 weeks of V02.

My plan for the next few weeks incorporates a day of V02 intervals a week so hopefully this will jump start my mojo as I'm not feeling it right now.

Race Prep has started

2009-07-06T17:27:00.002-04:00

I'm starting the final 12 weeks of training for my A race - Ironman 70.3 Augusta on September 27th. The run and swim volume increase by an hour each discipline and if everything goes as planned, I'll put in 13 to 14:30 hours a week over the next 10 weeks before cutting back the volume for peaking/tapering.

Today called for 3200yds of which I completed 2900yds due to my training partner needing to get to work or me being a slow swimmer. WU: 200 swim, 200 pull MS: 40 x 50 (10") as odds hard and evens easy. 100 easy swim and then 2 x 300 (15") pull CD: 200 swim

I finished up with an hour run with 3 x 1 mile at TP.

Tomorrow calls for: WU: 200 swim, 200 pull MS: 6 x 200 (15") Pull @ T-Pace +5" CD: 200 and a 40' run @ LRP/MP.

87 days and counting

2009-07-01T09:56:00.003-04:00

87 days until my A race. I start my 12 week HIM plan on 7/6 which will take me right up to race day. My swim workouts will change slightly but mainly the time will increase by about 50%, not to mention the distance. Hopefully by the end of the 12 weeks, I will have made peace with the water and will be Hackett or Phelps-like swimming in the nuclear waste run-off stream called the Savannah River.

I've bagged quite a bit of bike and run testing as I feel I'm pretty in tune with my power #'s and don't want to aggravate my hamstring or piriformis muscle by trying to blow out a 5K test. It is what it is and on race day, I will run what my body says I can run.

Regarding the bike power, I've dropped my FTP over the past several weeks as adapting to the new aero position has taken longer than expected and I'm having difficulty hitting the target range for my intervals. Part of it is that I need to HTFU and "Just Do It!", but now that I'm more aero, I'm finding it difficult to hit the FTP target. I did add a spacer back under my stem now that I'm done with short course racing and also in hopes of eeking out a few more watts.

Race Report - Tri the Midlands

2009-06-22T14:25:00.003-04:00

First race of the 2009 season is in the books. I improved my swim time by over 3 minutes versus 2008 and my run time by 1:37. The bike course changed so no way to compare results but even though I held back, my split was within 60 seconds of the open/top finishers. Not sure what happened in transition but in looking at my times, I could've showered and shaved in the time it took me in T1 and T2. I was over a minute slower in total transition versus 2008.

They changed the run course slightly and instead of running the sidewalk out and back, we ran the road out and sidewalk back. The change resulted in a much steeper grade on the out portion of the run and such that I saw many people walking the steepest point. I was hoping for a sub 21 run but just didn't feel it. I wore my cushion shoes - Nike Vomero's to help me absorb the shock of going down hill and I think the additional weight kept me from a quicker turnover. Still improved my time over 2008 but not where I wanted to be. Knowing that there was only one peson in my age group ahead of me (several minutes) made it hard to push myself over the hills/etc.

22 out of 255
3rd place Masters (second place was 5 seconds faster)
2nd place 40-44 AG

500M Swim (plus 60yd run to T1) - 10:43
T1 - 1:36
Bike - 14 miles - 37:40 (my computer says 14.6 miles)
T2 - 1:14
Run - 5K - 22:08

1:13:18

New Saddle - John Cobb V-Flow +

2009-05-20T17:58:00.003-04:00

I've been having issues such as pain, numbness, and not being able to find the sweet spot on the Fizik Arione Tri2 that came on my Scott Plasma and decided to try the V-Flow + from Cobb Cycling. I know saddles fit people differently but I've got to say, this saddle is amazing. I received it last Thursday and rode it for the first time on Saturday. I can happily report that I didn't have any pain, numbness, soreness, etc and was able to find the sweet spot pretty quickly and settle in for a 3 hour ride. 90% of the ride was in my aero bars so I definitely gave it a thorough test drive. An hour's worth of FTP intervals today and still no issues. I couldn't be happier. Cosmetically, this saddle is one of the ugliest I've seen but comfort wise, it's the best!

Free shipping and a 180 day money back guarantee is hard to pass on. Give it a try, you'll be glad you did!

Pain update

2009-05-20T17:47:00.003-04:00

I think I've figured out my left leg pain and it as something to do with my sciatic nerve. I'm stretching like it's my job, using the foam roller, and sitting on tennis and golf balls to help loosen up and ease the pain. It appears to be working as I'm able to make it through some longer runs and some speed work without my left side flaring up.

I've also purchased some new shoes as the pair I purchased 2 months ago was a little too small as I bruised one of my toes on my long run 2 weeks ago and it appears I'm losing the nail. In addition, I seem to be mid-foot striking on my left foot and have totally compressed the foam on the outside of the shoe. I've moved away from the Mizuno wave riders and decided to try the Nike Vomero and Asics Landreth. The Landreth will serve as my mid distance shoe and the Vomero will serve as my long distance shoe. The cushioning of the Vomero is amazing and the tread pattern should help out with the mid foot strike. So far so good.

Mid foot cleats = lower HR??

2009-05-06T08:29:00.002-04:00

Not sure if this was a fluke or what but in doing my 3 x 10' FTP intervals yesterday, I decided to make a change for the last interval - moved my Look cleats as far back as they would go and compared the data.

Interval #2

Pavg - 264W
Cavg - 86 rpm
HRavg - 152 bpm
SPavg - 20.8 mph

Interval #3 (moved cleats back)

Pavg - 265W
Cavg - 84 rpm
HRavg - 147 bpm
SPavg - 20.5 mph

Hmmmmm........

Working through the pain

2009-05-06T08:20:00.003-04:00

Not much to report other than my piriformis and ITB acting up. The sore piriformis actually stopped me from running right at the end of my 16 week OS plan and along with several missed training days due to travel for work, forced me to withdraw from my first event of the year - Lake Murray Sprint. The pain would start about a mile into the run and would linger for the remainder of the run. Stopping and stretching would offer temporary relief but not enough to kick the pain for the rest of the run. I tried stretching and other methods of relief but nothing seemed to help until I received my foam roller.

I didn't realize how bad of shape my muscle tissue was until I rolled it for the first time. I said quite a few 4 letters words - mainly OUCH! OUCH! OUCH! What rolling I did do seemed to offer some relief and i was able to complete 3 x 10' @95% FTP without any pain. More rolling this morning before I run this afternoon and hopefully, will be close to pain free.

I'm coming to the end of my 2 week transition between plans and will start 8 weeks of what Endurance Nation calls Basic Month which is the time when you start adding structured swim workouts and distance to the bike and run. Time to add far to the fast.

My job is getting in the way of my hobby

2009-04-26T21:33:00.002-04:00

I've been traveling a lot lately and as a result, my training has really suffered. I've only been able to complete about 6 workouts in the past 2 weeks and have decided to pull the plug on next weeks sprint tri at Lake Murray. I'm kind of bummed about it as it will be my first opportunity to swim in my new wetsuit but there will be plenty of other opportunities. My left hamstring / hip flexor is still pretty sore so going all out in the 5k is probably not a good idea.

I put away the indoor trainer and am transitioning to my tri bike as I move into the next phase of my training. The next 2 weeks are supposed to be off or transition weeks but I find it hard to do this knowing I pretty much transitioned the past two weeks.

Thinking about getting my position critiqued by ttbikefit.com

Why not Bike, Swim, & Run or Run, Swim, and Bike?

2009-04-13T08:25:00.005-04:00

Freestyle swimming has humbled me. Growing up, I was a pretty decent breaststroker and have a box full of county meet ribbons to prove it. Freestyle was my next best stroke but that's all changed. Fast forward 30+ years and while I can still breaststroke fairly well, I can't freestyle for the life of me. For some reason I sink no matter how low I keep my head and regardless if I have a pull buoy between my legs. Breathing while swimming freestyle, forget about it. How could something so simple be so difficult in the water? Give me a snorkel and I'll swim circles around you.

I'm been swimming on average 2X per week since December and I'm no further along. I was making great strides in early February but then we headed to Disney for a few days and I came down with the flu and I've been pretty much useless in the water since that time.

Maybe a Master's class would help or private lessons. Or maybe they could change the order of the disciplines and move the swim to the middle and that way I could use my strength biking or running to get a time gap on all of the swimmers. Or maybe I could wear a snorkel and be so fast out of the water that I wouldn't hear the comments like - where's your spear gun? I'm not sure I'm up for all the ridicule of wearing a snorkel as the blogs are still talking about fin man from IMFL.

I tried making peace with the water as Bree Wee suggested in her blog. It didn't work. We're still at odds with one another.

Rising FTP

2009-04-06T13:19:00.002-04:00

My 12' to 20' FTP efforts have been getting easier so I keep increasing my FTP in small increments. All of the VO2 work has allowed me to turn up the watts by 15 to 25 in the last 3' to 5' of the interval. Did a hill interval on Saturday while visiting family in the North GA mountains with an average grade of 6.5% that took me 20' to cover 3.7 miles with a Pavg of 300W. I'm thinking my FTP is at or above 280W which would put me at or above 4W/Kg.

Still undecided about the May 3rd sprint at Lake Murray just because it is my youngest daughter's birthday and I'm not sure what she has planned for the weekend.

More 2 x 20's, 3 x 10', and 3 x 2.5' intervals this week on the bike along with some MP, HMP, and TP run workouts. As far as the swimming goes, I'm trying to put in 3 workouts a week but due to my travel schedule, I've been hitting 1 or 2 at best.

Waterproof Garmin Forerunner 310XT

2009-04-02T07:39:00.002-04:00

Finally, a waterproof Garmin for the multi-sport athlete. Available Summer 2009. See link below.

Link

Unexpected results

2009-03-31T17:59:00.003-04:00

I've been taking part in a double top secret power hack for Endurance Nation over the past 4 weeks and this week is our testing week. Results so far have been positive for the guinea pigs with some showing upwards of a 7% increase in 5' power and others increasing their FTP by 5% in just 4 weeks.

The power hack wizard hasn't computed my new FTP but my test results are as follows:

Week 1, 5' Pavg: 322W
Week 5, 5' Pavg: 357W - Gain of 35W or 11% increase

My all time best 5' Pavg is 366W and was tested in 6/07.

Week 1, 20' Pavg: 278W
Week 5, 20' Pavg: 289W (first 10' @ 283W, second 10' @ 295W) - Gain of 11W or 4% increase

The test protocol was as follows:
WU: 15' - 20'
MS: 5' all out
12' easy
3' @ 30"on/30" off with on being at 120% of FTP
5' easy
20' all out
CD: 20 minutes easy

Feeling pretty good about the results and am anxious to learn what all of this means. I think I know - I haven't developed my FTP to its fullest potential.

Legs feeling pretty good

2009-03-28T14:07:00.003-04:00

Headed out of town Thursday afternoon for a business meeting Friday AM and ended up getting home at 9:00PM last night due to flight delays. Woke up early and decided to drink a pot of coffee before the wife and kids rolled out of bed at 9:00AM. By 11:00AM, I was chomping at the bit to get the workout done so off I went.

Plan called for 2 x 12' at 95 - 100% FTP and 2 x 15' at 85% of FTP. Was supposed to do a 30' run at HMP but it is pouring ran and thundering so I think I'll pass. Results were as follows:

#1: 271W
#2: 279W
#3: 235W
#4: 233W

With my current FTP set at 270W, I think I'm due for another bump. The bump coupled with my weight loss should result in me being over 4W/kg and I haven't even completed my off season - 4 weeks to go.

Have a 5' maximal power test and 20' FTP test on Tuesday so hopefully they'll go well and I'll see a nice bump.

26'of VO2 work

2009-03-25T13:19:00.002-04:00

Wrapping up my final week of the Endurance Nation double top secret power hack with 26' at 120% of FTP on Tuesday. Pain never felt so good.

30' swim this morning with an hour run this afternoon consisting of 10 x 200m and 4 x 400m at IP or 6:39. 2 x 20' at 95-100% on Thursday before heading out of town until Friday PM.

New De Soto T1 First Wave Wetsuit

2009-03-23T20:38:00.003-04:00

Ended up going with a 2009 De Soto T1 First Wave bibjohn and pullover. Contacted De Soto direct and purchased a blemished graphics set for a stoopidly low price that I couldn't pass up. Why the De Soto? Probably the ease of taking it off and being able to dial in the fit by mixing sizes for the bibjohn and pullover.

7 mile run

2009-03-22T21:41:00.003-04:00

Training plan called for 3 x 1 mile at Z4/TP (7:05) with 1 mile @ Z1/LRP (8:39) as recovery after each mile. Workout was pretty uneventful and it was nice to run in the sunshine.

Last week of the Endurance Nation double top secret VO2 workouts before my final 5' MP and 20' power tests. Based on my intervals on Saturday AM, my FTP might be even higher than estimated the other day as I had no problem putting out the power during the 2 x 12' and actually had to throttle it back.

My weight after my run was 153.3 but I'm sure it was a result of sweating and burning 900kj.

Off day tomorrow and will skip the pool as well as my pool mate is out of town.

On to her great reward!

2009-03-20T19:01:00.007-04:00

Our family pet of more than 16 years was put down on Friday after a courageous fight with kidney failure. She fought a good fight and other than weight loss and being picky about food, you would never have known anything was wrong with her. I was never a cat person until a co-worker gave Sally to me as a kitten. She changed my perception of cats and when my wife and girls are ready for another pet, I'm sure it will be a cat.

My workout this morning was just not the same as my training partner, Sally was missing. Sally would position herself on the rug next to my bike/trainer and would stay there until I finished my workout. I think she enjoyed the vibration and the white noise helped her dose off in one of her many cat naps. When I started the VO2 intervals a few weeks ago, I was struggling to make it through the last 3 minute interval and I swear I saw her mouth move and then in her best Jens Voigt impersonation, she said : Your body is talking to you and saying I can't do it anymore! I can't do it anymore! Listen to your mind which is telling your body to shut up, and do what I tell you!" She was living proof of this as her body was shutting down, yet she would crawl up on your lap and purr.

Thanks for the memories!! You'll surely be missed.

In tribute to Sally, I cranked out 2 x 12' at 276W and 278W and a 1 x 15' at 246W.

Tired legs

2009-03-18T21:34:00.002-04:00

Did 8 miles today by way of 8 x 1000m (2' easy in between) at Z4 or 7:05 pace. No problem completing the intervals but my left leg feels jacked up from the hip down to the outside of my knee. I was just thinking the other day that I'm running pain free and my body has adapted to the speed work pretty well. Except when I don't stretch. Need to spend more time after the run and on off days stretching as my legs can tell a big difference when I do.

I'm flying out to Baltimore tomorrow which means an early morning and 2 x 15' at FTP on the trainer before I head out to Charlotte to catch my flight. Hopefully my legs show up as my PMC tells me that I'll have a TSB of -20 tomorrow so I'm not expecting too much.

More VO2 work

2009-03-17T14:57:00.002-04:00

Still a lab rat for Endurance Nation's double top secret 5 week bike training plan modification. Today my workout consisted of 23' of VO2 work at 120% of FTP. To help clear out the legs, I did a 20' LRP run afterward as it was too pretty outside not to.

My weight has dropped again, so I'm now around 154lbs. Getting closer to my target of 150lbs by September.

Backhanded Compliment.....I think.

2009-03-15T21:16:00.003-04:00

Sitting at Sunday lunch at my in-laws and my wife looks over at me and says - " Are you still trying to lose weight?" After having polished off a fried chicken breast, one serving of rice and gravy, 2 servings of butter beans, serving of corn, two servings of collard greens, a salad, and a slice of pecan pie, I responded - "Does it look like I'm trying to lose weight? Why do you ask?"

Her response - "because your head appears to be out of proportion with the rest of your body. Meaning is appears too big."

More FTP work

2009-03-14T14:41:00.002-04:00

Legs felt great today coming off a rest day (with the exception of a swim) on Friday. Plan called for 2 x 12' at 95-100% FTP and 2 x 15' @85% FTP. Ended up doing 268W and 266W for the first 2 intervals (100% is 270W) and 233W and 238W for the second 2 which were actually more than the 85% of FTP target.

I think my FTP has increased again but I'll keep it at 270W until my next test which is 3 weeks away. My guess is about an 8 to 10W increase but we'll see.

Training

2009-03-11T19:08:00.006-04:00

Started my second week of incorporating some VO2 intervals and Tuesday I ended up with 17' of VO2 work. I did a 20', Z1 brick run after the intervals to help clear the legs. Felt good and slept like a baby.

Swam Monday and today - about 1200yds each day and did a 50' run today which included 4 x 30" strides and 3 x 1 mile (4' off) at 5K pace. Wasn't sure of the pace so I ended up doing 6:44, 6:32, and 6:38. Legs felt pretty good and it was nice to get outside in the 80F degree weather.

Tomorrow calls for 2 x 12' @ 95-100% FTP and 2 x 15' @ 85% FTP and another swim on Friday.

Free ebook from Endurance Nation

2009-03-09T19:44:00.001-04:00

An Introduction to Training and Racing Triathlon with Power. You can download it for free here.

Guinea Pig

2009-03-05T21:52:00.004-05:00

Made it back from Puerto Rico in one piece. Had some great sushi at the Water Bar on the roof of the SJ Water & Beach Club Hotel overlooking the ocean. Just down the street from the El San Juan Hotel and Casino. Got in a run and bike workout so all was not lost.

As far as being a Guinea Pig, I'm taking part in a double top secret training program over the next 5 weeks for Endurance Nation. I'm replacing the Tuesday and Thursday bike workouts with the test workouts in hopes that I'll be ripping the pedals off in 4 weeks. More in May when my non-disclosure expires.

Functional Threshold Power Test #2

2009-02-24T13:53:00.004-05:00

My Endurance Nation OS plan called for a 40 minute FTP test to track progress and reset training zones. Instead of going all out for 20 minutes and taking 95% of the NP which is what I normally do and I know it is one of the 7 deadly sins of determining FTP, Endurance Nation prefers that you do a 2x20' with a 2' rest between and use the NP (normalized power) for the entire 42 minutes as your FTP.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I switched to my Tri bike last week so I really didn't know what to expect with this test. I managed to do the first 20' interval at 274W and the second 20' interval at 270W. It appears that I pretty much coasted or soft pedaled during the 2 minutes which didn't help my overall numbers. Next time I'll pedal at a wattage of at least 150W.

I didn't expect more than a 10W increase to be honest with you and especially doing it on the Tri bike. My weight has dropped about 2.5lbs to 155.5lbs since my last test so with the 10W increase and the lower weight, by new w/kg # comes out to 3.8W/kg which is 0.2W/kg below the magic 4W/kg #.

I'm close to reaching 2 of my season goals only 2 months into my season so I guess I'll be raising the bar again. Goal #1 is an FTP of 280W and Goal # 2 is reaching 4 w/kg. I ended the 2008 season with an FTP of 280W-285W but the difference is that I spent 99% of my training time on the bike whereas this year, I'm training for 3 different disciplines and therefore, time is limited and the reason why the goal is the same as I achieved last year.

I was supposed to do a brick after the test but I need to catch up on work, eat lunch, and pick up my cleaning as I'm heading to Puerto Rico tomorrow to visit with a customer and sample the local fare. I guess my 2 x 20' workout for Thursday will be done on the hotel bike.

Moving to the TT bike

2009-02-21T14:30:00.002-05:00

I decided to switch to my TT bike for all of my workouts as I haven't spent much time on it or in the aero position. I was planning on making the switch in May but with a threshold power test on Tuesday, I figured this was as good of a time as any.

Plan called for:

2 x 12' @ 95 - 100% FTP
2 x 15' @ 85% FTP

Brick

30 minutes with first 15' at MP (7:32) and last 15' at HMP (7:14).

I ended up doing 262W and 263W for the first 2 intervals and 221W and 223W for the second 2. No issues in the aero position and I found it easier to generate the power on the TT versus my road bike. Strange as this was the opposite last year.

Trying to find my legs

2009-02-21T14:21:00.002-05:00

Wednesday called for a 45' run with 4 x 30" strides and a MS of 4 x 1 mile at TP or 7:05. I swam for 45 minutes in the morning and put off the run until early evening due to rain and motivation. instead of running on wet pavement and carrying a light, I headed back to YMCA to use the dreadmill. I did a quick warm-up and started the first mile interval. I bagged it at 0.60. My PE was very high and so was my heart rate. Maybe it was the new environment or the coed in spandex on the elliptical in front of me. I walked for 3 minutes and started the second mile. I bagged this one at 0.70. Bagging the miles becomes easier the more you do it. Walked for another 3 minutes and started mile 3. I stopped it at 0.75. I just couldn't concentrate so I decided to bag mile 4 before I even started it and switched to 200m and 400m intervals. I had no problem completing 3x200m and 3x400m at 6:49 and finally stopped the workout at 42 minutes. I uploaded my data and realized that my ATL and CTL are at all time highs and my TSB is hovering around -24 w. No wonder I was suffering.

FTP Intervals with a brick thrown in

2009-02-17T13:38:00.003-05:00

Monday was an off day but I did spend 45 minutes floundering in the pool. Today called for 2 x 20' intervals and then a 45' brick run at EP or 8:49 with 5 x 30" uphill strides. Intervals were surprisingly easy and I did the first one at 252W and the second at 253W. I need to test as my FTP is probably around 270W but I'll wait until the schedule calls for it which I believe is next Tuesday. I start adding VO2 work on the bike in 2 weeks and this work typically boosts my FTP.

Sunday's run workout

2009-02-16T09:21:00.003-05:00

I'm coming to the end of week 6 of my Endurance Nation OS plan and the Sunday run appears to be changing for the next 3 weeks.

Plan called for:

Run 0:45
WU: 15'easy, including 4x30" strides

MS: 2 x 200m at Z5/IP
3 x 400m at Z5/IP
3 x 200m at Z5/IP

WD: 5' easy

IP for me right now is 6:39. I didn't pace real well on the first several intervals and ended up in the mid 5's to upper 5's for the first 2 and then tried to dial in the pace for the 1/4 mile intervals and ended up 6:23, 6:33, and 6:37. Not a bad workout and I had no issues completing any of the intervals. I did take extra time stretching at the end of the workout as my left hamstring always gives me issues when I do speed work.

Life is too short

2009-02-14T14:30:00.009-05:00

I learned Friday morning that my company lost two employees as a result of the crash of Continental Flight 3407. One was returning home to Buffalo after a meeting in our divisional office in NJ and the other who works as an engineer at our manufacturing facility in Buffalo died when the plane came crashing through his house. What are the odds???

Friday was a tough day not only because of the loss of 2 co-workers but because I live on airplanes and fly anywhere between 75,000- to 100,000 air miles a year. In fact, I was in NJ all week and flying home on Continental out of Newark when they were experiencing wind gusts of upwards of 75mph.

50% of my division's employees are virtual - meaning we work from remote locations such as our home and of the 50%, 40% do the majority of their traveling by air. This easily could've been me. When you fly on imperfect machines, flown by imperfect people in imperfect conditions, you must expect the worst. I think Will Frischkorn of Garmin Chipotle said it best when he was blogging about the death of fellow cyclist Frederiek Nolf, 22 of Team Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator who died in his sleep at the Tour of Qatar earlier this month:

"It’s truly amazing how fragile we all are, and how much is taken for granted. A powerful reminder to live every day with passion, love, and enjoy it all, for one never knows how long it will last."

My thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends who lost someone in the crash.

Endurance Nation FREE 30-Day Membership

2009-02-11T07:21:00.002-05:00

Endurance Nation is offering:

Free 30-day membership and team coaching trial

I'm drinking the Kool Aid, why aren't you?

5K Test - 52 second improvement

2009-02-11T07:11:00.002-05:00

My Endurance Nation OS plan called for a 45' run with 4 x 30" strides and the main set being 3 x 1 mile @ Z4/TP with 4' easy between. Since I was sick last week and wasn't able to test, I decided I would substitute it for this workout. I didn't pace well on my first test so I made sure this was a priority. I dialed the pace in at 6:44 for the first 2 miles and then dropped it to 6:40 for the remaining 1.1.

I ended up with a 20:48 for a new VDOT of 47.6 or an improvement of 2.2 points. I cut 52" from my last test so it is safe to say, I'm getting faster and I have Endurance Nation to thank.

FTP Intervals with a brick run

2009-02-07T12:29:00.002-05:00

My Endurance Nation OS program called for 1:15 on the bike and a 20' brick run. For the bike, the plan called for 2x12' on at 95 - 100% of FTP and 4'off and then 2x15' on @ 85% with 2' off between interval sets. A 5 minute transition and then out the door for a 20' run with the first 10' at MP and the last 10' at HMP.

My numbers were as follows:

Interval #1: 12' @ 256W
Interval #2: 12' @ 259W
Interval #3: 15' @ 224W
Interval #4: 15' @ 221W

Legs felt a little heavy at the start of the run but started coming around at minute 8. The new shoes felt great and no pain to speak of during or after the run. I've got a 45' Z1 run with 4x30" uphill strides tomorrow so the additional time in the shoes will be a good thing and help me determine if they're a keeper.

New running shoes

2009-02-06T17:49:00.003-05:00

I've been experiencing some ITB issues on my left side and feel as though my shoes are causing the problem. The store put me in some Mizuno Wave Rider 11's size 9 and off I went. The size 9 should've been a red flag but I listened to the store owner as she said "trust me". The toe box of said shoe felt like a swimming pool and I felt like I was wearing clown shoes. 225 miles later, I decided enough was enough.

I went back to the same store only because of convenience and was helped by a very knowledgeable young man. He put me on the treadmill again and really advised me against a stability shoe based on what he saw and suggested we look at other neutral shoes with less firm heels. The pair that felt the best was the Asics Landreth. At least it did up until I tried on the new - 2009 Mizuno Wave Rider 12. OMG - what huge difference. The Mizuno felt like home and with the new model I was able to size back down to my normal 8.5 with a perfect feeling toe box. There are so many changes that the shoe feels and hopefully performs much different than the previous model. I've got a short brick tomorrow and a long slow run on Sunday so I should be able to tell if these are a keeper or not. If not, it's the Asics Landreth for me.

Back in the saddle again

2009-02-06T09:10:00.002-05:00

My sickness ended up being the flu. My youngest came down with similar symptoms on Sunday and her nose swab on Monday came back positive.

I took the weekend off and started back with the Endurance Nation OS plan on Tuesday. I bagged the FTP and 5K test and performed 2 x 10' and 2 x 12' FTP intervals on Tuesday and Thursday and 3 x 1 mile @TP on Wednesday. I've managed to maintain the watts and the pace that I was putting out prior to getting sick so I appear to be back on track.

I'm in NJ next week for a sales meeting and luckily, there is a YMCA close by so I should be able to stick to the plan. I hate performing FTP intervals on a Life Cycle so hopefully they have spinning bikes.

2 steps forward, 1 step back

2009-02-01T11:59:00.002-05:00

My training is on hold due to me picking up some type of virus or something during my last business trip - damn that recycled air! We headed to Disney with my parents for a quick Sunday thru Friday tour of 4 theme parks and I started feeling some aches later in the day on Wednesday. Earlier that morning, I ran 50 minutes (4 x 1 @ TP) in the resort's fitness center and just assumed the aches were due to riding Tower of Terror, Rock & Roller Coaster over and over and the run. Boy was I wrong. I woke up Thursday AM congested, swollen glands, and a heaviness in my lungs. The heaviness turned into non stop dry coughing which progressed into a wet cough that felt like I swallowed boiling soup every time I coughed.

We arrived back home Friday evening, too late to see the doctor so it looks as though I'm in a holding pattern until Monday, when I hope to get some relief. BTW - 7 days to the day from first flight to onset of symptoms. I guess I need to get one of those SARS masks that were all the rage a few years ago and wear it when I travel which will be again in 8 days.

What's frustrating is that I was seeing big gains in my swim endurance, run times and efforts at threshold power on the bike. Better to get this over with now as my A race is still 237 days away!

The little engine that could.....

2009-01-22T10:02:00.003-05:00

Lance talking about being in the break in Stage # 3 of the TDU.

"I think it's the kind of stuff I need to do, I need to get in the race and work that top end," he said. "Like I've said 100 times here, I can't get that in training so the more I can be out there... I mean, I looked down at my power meter and the average after two hours was 340 watts, you can't do that in training. You're just constantly going and going and going."

Lance goes old school

2009-01-19T16:58:00.001-05:00

Check out Lance's new skips....

2 down, 14 more to go!

2009-01-18T20:49:00.008-05:00

Done with the second week of my Endurance Nation OS plan and feeling pretty good. I started targeting at least 100% of my FTP versus 95-100% when I do my intervals as the efforts are annoying or distracting but I wouldn't call them tough. Maybe I sandbagged my FTP by 5 - 10 watts but the next test will settle that issue. The time for each interval increases to 12' this week so we'll see how things go.

Just watched the TDU and Lance looks lean and all business!

Back from vacation

2009-01-14T08:50:00.004-05:00

The legs felt pretty good coming off 5 days of playing in the powder in Utah. The plan called for 3 x 8' on 2' off at 95-100% FTP. I actually increased the average wattage for each succeeding interval, saving the best for last. I then ran at an easy pace for 25 minutes to complete the day's scheduled workout.

I've been swimming for 45 minutes every M, W, and F in hopes of improving my stroke and building endurance and I'm starting to see a little improvement. I was active in swim team as a kid (numerous county and region breast stroke ribbons to prove it) but up until December 08, I only swam 5X in the past 28 years and the 5X were an attempt to get ready for my first sprint triathlon (6/08). I don't count wading in the pool with my kids as structured swimming nor do I count lounging in a chair watching the waves crash the beach at Holden. So, with little base to build on, the ROI is pretty high for me right now and the additional time has little effect on my other training.

The runs at HMP and TP are getting easier as I'm having to really focus on slowing down my pace when performing these intervals. I guess the 200 miles I did at 180 cadenece (listing to a metronome on my Ipod) are paying off by keeping my turnover high.

I have 2 solid weeks of training before I head to Disney with the family and hope this is the last major break in my training schedule.

5K TT - 17 second improvement

2008-12-31T17:23:00.005-05:00

I decided to do my run testing a week early as I'll be heading out of town when my training plan calls for the test. My warm-up consisted of a 1.5 mile jog over to a local city park that has a dirt track that is rarely, if ever used as I thought this would be a great venue for doing these monthly tests.

I started out a pace that I thought I could hold the entire 5K. After 1.5 miles, I realized I was wrong. I ran the first mile in 6:38, second in 7:09, third in 7:13, and the final 0.10 in 6:36 for a grand total of 21:40. Nothing like a positive split!! Not bad considering I haven't done any speed work and I shaved 17 seconds off my 5K time I did in a race a little over a month ago. My vDot climbed 0.4 to 45.4 but still not where I want to be which is under 20'. Hopefully the next 16 weeks will get me closer to my goal - just in time for short course racing!

Next month I'll go out a little more conservative - 7' first mile and then try to drop 10 seconds on each of the remaining miles.

Time for some altitude training

2008-12-27T17:48:00.001-05:00

Heading to Park City, UT in a few days to partake in the dry, white powder and hopefully boost my RBC's. Nothing like a little legal PED (performance enhancing drug) to get the 2009 season started off in the right direction!

Signed up with Endurance Nation

2008-12-27T17:37:00.004-05:00

I decided to sign up with Endurance Nation for the 2009 season and have purchased my annual training plan for Ironman 70.3 Augusta. I decided to go the "self-coached" route next year as I'm planning for only 1 peak versus two this year and I'm sticking to triathlons in 2009 whereas I was doing road races, crits, and time trials in 2008. EN has been very prompt and "on the ball" with regards to sending you the plans, collateral training material, etc within minutes of sending payment. In addition, I received an answer to a question I posted on the forum in less than an hour.

Shaving legs = Start of new season

2008-12-16T09:38:00.005-05:00

It's official, my training for the 2009 season has started with the "trimming of the tree" I mean shaving of the legs. Once my season is over, I typically take a few weeks or months off from shaving the legs. I guess it signals my body that it's rest time and time to load up on empty carbs, saturated fat and hydrogenated oils.

Last year this time I was putting in 14 to 17 hour weeks on the bike to get ready for the bike racing season in April / May. In hindsight this was a big mistake as I was flying in April /May and dead in July /August. My season was over before it really got started. Switching to Tri's for 2009 - Sprint and long course - will be quite a bit different for me and doing a gradual build makes sense as my A race - Ironman 70.3 Augusta is in September.

I've been running and cycling several days a week with the majority of my bike work being at SST - getting the biggest return for the time put in. Still undecided about a training plan. Looking at Endurance Nation as I'm a power meter user and really like their approach of using the "out season" or off season to build speed on the bike and run. The race isn't won in the water so spending 5 days a week perfecting my swim stroke doesn't make sense to me. The only triathlon I did in 2008 had me coming out of the water 18th in my group and I only spent 5 days training for the swim 30 days before the event. I can hold my own and will get faster just by spending time on the discipline.

Tentative race schedule for 2009:

5/3/09 - Lake Murray Triathlon

6/20/09 - Tri the Midlands Triathlon

9/6/09 - Hartsville YMCA International Triathlon

9/27/09 - Ironman 70.3 Augusta

I'm sure I'll add a few 10K races throughout the year and will modify the schedule accordingly.

Getting back on the bike

2008-11-13T15:31:00.004-05:00

I decided after the SC State Road Race that this race would be my last bicycle only race for quite some time as I'm transitioning to triathlons full time for 2009. My A race will be the 1st Annual Ironman 70.3 Augusta on September 27th, 2009 and will add a few sprint distance events throughout the year.

I've been running for the past 2 months while taking time off of the bike. Pretty much Zone 2 and on average about 18 miles/wk. I downloaded a metronome mp3 for my Ipod and have been running consistently at 180bpm and just upped the cadence to 185. I decided to enter the 14th Annual Marion duPont Scott Colonial Cup 5K mainly because the start is about 2.5 miles away from my house and I needed some speed work.

I started out a little hot - 5:42 pace for the first 1/2 mile and decided I better ease up and actually slowed down a little too much going into mile 2. I made the turn and realized that everyone in front of me with the exception of one guy was doing the 10K. At mile 2 I turned around and didn't see anyone so I knew I was safe but also realized I wasn't in any shape to catch the person in the lead. I finished 2nd overall with a 21:57 and 1st in my AG - 35-39. The guy that beat me was actually a teenager - 14 to be exact and he ran a 19:21. I had plenty in the tank and probably should've pushed it but couldn't find the motivation knowing that I couldn't catch the guy in front and there wasn't any concern about being caught. Probably will run in the 1st Annual Fitness Zone Jingle Bell 5K on 12/13 and with better pacing I should be able to go mid 20's.

Started back on the bike this week and estimated that I probably lost about 20W or less at FTP. I plan on doing about 4 hours/wk on the bike (T, TH, SAT) with all the work being 2-3 x 8' to 10' minute intervals at 95 - 100% of FTP. I will throw in some 85% of FTP on my long day (SAT) after my MS intervals are done. Mondays and Fridays will be off for now and my running schedule will be as follows:

30 minute brick on Tuesday - Z1 with 3 x 30" strides
45 minute run on Wednesday - Tempo with 3 x 1 miles at Z4 with 4 minutes in between
30 minute brick on Saturday staring in Z2 and finishing in Z3
60 - 90 minute run on Sunday with 15' Z1, then 4 x 30" strides. MS will be 3 x 1 mile at Z3 with 4 minutes recovery in between.

Should be fun and will start my annual plan in January.

Bronze Medal CAT 4 - SC State Road Race Champs

2008-09-01T14:54:00.004-04:00

The race was uneventful and rather slow at times - almost felt like a CAT 5 race. Race was 45 miles or 3, 15 mile loops. One attempted break but lasted all of 5 minutes before me and the eventual winner reeled them in.

A little change over last in that they opened the road up at the final 100m versus 200m. Just picture 50+ CAT 4 riders all trying to fit in one lane for 900m. Better yet, try putting 2lbs in a 1lb bag and you'll get the picture. At 500m, the first wreck happened about 10yards behind and the second wreck happened at 250m again, 10 yards behind me. I estimate the wrecks wiped out about 25 racers. At one point, I saw a bike less rider go airborne out of my peripheral vision and the bike must have been 10+ feet in the air. I've seen my share of wrecks but these two were pretty ugly and nothing like hearing grown men scream like little girls!

I was pretty much at my limit and crossed the line sitting up. I finished 12th overall and 3rd from SC. This will be my last race of the season as I need a break and I need to get back to work.

Thanks to my coach Dave Morris for all of his help, guidance, and of course training plans!

Not much going on

2008-07-21T20:46:00.003-04:00

My role at work has changed slightly due to the recent acquisition and therefore, my open schedule just closed with a lot of new travel that will disrupt my training for the SC State Road Race. I should be in good form at the end of August but not like I was in April and May.

Compete in Triathlon - Check!

2008-06-25T12:16:00.005-04:00

I have an unofficial list of things to do before I die and competing in a triathlon was one. I decided back in late April to enter the Tri the Midlands triathlon and made a promise to myself that I would limit the training days to 5 each for the other 2 disciplines - swimming and running. Reason being, I have limited access to a swimming pool and the only time I'm running is if I'm being chased. I held true to my word and swam 5X but only 4X - 1X running a full 5K.

With this being my first triathlon, I entered the Novice category and we had a total field of 42. Of the 3 disciplines, the swim would be my biggest challenge. 500M isn't far but when you only trained 5X and couldn't string more than 75M of freestyle together at one time, I knew I was in for a long swim. I made a Novice mistake by lining up in the middle and being a left hand breather, I should've started on the inside or outside. For this course, the outside would've been preferred as it would've been the shortest line to the first bouy. I'm always amazed how body fat keeps people afloat and allows the heavier people to outswim the skinny ones.

The official time with the long run T1 was 13:52 and I was 18th out of 42 coming out of the water.

Next up, the 12 mile bike leg. I knew I had alot of ground to make up as I was in the water way too long. The new Scott Plasma was amazing but I wish I had more than a week to get acclimated to the bike and position. I started out a little conservative as I had no idea what to expect coming off the bike and running a few miles. On the flats I was able to maintain speeds of 26 - 27 mph and had no problems powering over the rollers. I was a little frustrated at the local police as I had to come to almost a complete stop at one of the intersections as a person they flagged through stopped in the middle of the intersection to take a picture of the cyclists and the cop just stood there and waved at the person taking the picture. On the final right turn before heading back into Lake Carolina the same cop allowed a car to turn right in front of a group of 3 riders and the car was in no hurry to pull away and all three of us had to brake and lost all momentum coming out of the turn. Once in the neighborhood, the number of riders tripled and people were not staying to the right and the faster riders had to weave in and out, trying not to lose too much time.

T1 was 1:19 and now that I've done a tri, I know how to shave some seconds in this area. I completed the bike in 31:16 and finished 1st out of 42 and 20th out of 240. T2 was 57 seconds.

The legs felt OK off the bike and they finally came around in mile 2. I wasn't anticipating the course being as hilly as it was and the 4 days I trained for the run were on a flat course. The walking trail was a little awkward to run on but once I got over the last hill and onto the flat towards the finish, I opened it up and pretty much sprinted to the finish line. My time for the 5K was 23:45 which was 8th in my group.

Total Time: 1:11:08, 2nd place Novice division, 70th place overall. Congratulations to Nick, my Harrell's teammate who finished 1st in the 30-34 division and 8th overall.

Scott Plasma Pro is finally here!

2008-06-14T22:27:00.002-04:00

I got fitted for my Scott Plasma Pro today and headed out for a 90 minute ride after lunch. My position isn't as low as anticipated (tension in shoulder due to reaching) but I think I'm aero enough. My personal opinion is that people are riding bikes in positions that may be aerodynamic but uncomfortable as all get out. After 90 minutes on the bike, no soreness or stiffness in my back or neck.

Wow! This bike wants to go fast. With the stock Cosmic Elite on the front and my Mavic OP rim with PowerTap SL on the rear, I was riding along at speeds of 25+ with little effort. The aero benefit of this bike allows you to go faster on fewer watts. What a beautiful thing.

One area of concern is my heart rate. Once in the aero bars, my heart rate shoots up to 160+ with moderate effort. I might need to open up my chest by moving my bars out just a little bit to see if this helps. Then again, it could be my lack of hydration before heading out for a ride in 92+F weather.

Can't wait to see how my Zip 404's and Giro Advantage 2 helmet help me beat the clock next Saturday. I'm out of pocket a few days but will post some pictures later in the week. By the way, the JTek ShiftMate worked great. My Campy wheel is working fine with a Shimano chain and rear derailleur.

Put a fork in me, I'm done!

2008-06-05T16:18:00.003-04:00

I was planning on heading out at 6:30AM for a 3 hour ride but was informed by my children that their cheerleading camp performance was at 11:15AM. It was doable but I'm married to a night owl and getting her moving in the morning is tough, so I help out by getting the kids fed, watered, and supervise the teeth brushing while she showers and gets dressed. If everything goes as planned, they head out at 8:45AM for a 9:00AM camp. Not enough time for me to get my ride in.

The performance was over by 12:00 noon and on the way home, I checked the outside air temperature and it said 99F!!! My ride was not going to fun. I'd been hydrating all morning and added a little extra salt to my bottles and checked my weight and hydration on my scale before heading out. 157.2 lbs and a hydration level of 61.2% which is above where I normally am for this time of the day.

I headed out and decided to do the flat to rolling route to minimize fatigue from hills and immediately noticed a significant headwind. Nothing like a hot headwind to zap your energy. I felt sluggish after about 45 minutes into the ride and decided to pull over at a convenience store and get a cold bottle of water and something to eat. This did help and I made it a point to stop every 30 minutes thereafter just to get out of the sun.

I didn't quite make the goal of 3 hours but ended up with 2:30. My weight dropped to 154 and my hydration level actually increased to 62.4%. I checked accuweather.com when I got home and they showed the high for this afternoon to be 101F with 15 mph gusts. You've got to love the summer time in the South!

Sunday's workout

2008-06-03T20:30:00.002-04:00

The plan called for intervals consisting of 4X9 on 5 off. During the 9 "on", I alternated between 260W and 300W each minute. Pretty good workout and ended up with a TSS of 85 for a little over an hour.

More intervals on Wednesday and a long ride for Thursday before taking 2 days off to start the 4X10 on 5 off on Sunday.

Scott Plasma Pro

2008-05-30T08:19:00.006-04:00

After 2, top 15 finishes in flat, fast, and what seemed to me to be dangerous crits, I decided to limit my crit racing moving forward to 2 starting in 2009. The crits I've chosen are relatively "safe" and include some rollers that will cause some separation and again make things safer. At almost 40 with 2 kids and being the sole bread winner, I can't afford a broken collar bone or anything else moving forward. Call me a whimp but I say I'm pretty darn smart!

So what's my focus for 2009 and beyond? Road races and time trials. I think my road racing will benefit significantly from time trialling and throwing in the occasional sprint triathlon such as Tri the Midlands on 6/21, I will benefit from having a TT specific bike and gearing my training towards these events. If everything goes well, I may enter the SC State TT Championships in October.

I'm staying with my team's (Harrell's Bicycle World) bike sponsor - Scott and will take delivery of my Scott Plasma Pro next week. I was a little bummed because I'm a Campy guy and all of my wheels are Campy and I was already thinking that at a minimum, I would need to change the free hub on my Zipp 404 tubular (not the one with the PowerTap SL hub) from Campy to ShimaNO and ride using PE or heart rate. That was the plan up until I found the ShiftMate from Jtek Engineering.

ShiftMate allows you to mix ShimaNO and Campy components such as in my case, a Campy cassette with a ShimaNO derailleur and shifter and have it shift as if it were a complete drivetrain. In addition, I can use index shifting instead of friction. This little device installs just behind the barrel adjuster going into the rear derailleur. This little piece of heaven is only $35, significantly less than new free hubs, cassettes, etc.

Updates - recent purchase

2008-05-30T08:09:00.006-04:00

Well I sold my bike on eBay for significantly more than I anticipated. The guy who purchased it is from CA and actually bought it for his son who will not actually grow into the bike for another 6 - 12 months. Nothing like spending $3,000 for a 2 year old bike that doesn't currently fit and for what I assume is a teenager. I guess the old saying is correct, "fools and their money are soon parted."

Draggin'

2008-05-24T16:43:00.003-04:00

I cut my 4 hour ride short today by an hour as I just couldn't produce the power and I felt wiped out. From Sunday to today, I racked up a TSS of 759. Keep in mind that my average weekly TSS since 3/1 has been 397.

Next week is a transition week where Supercompensation occurs and I'm definitely looking forward to it.

Gotta get me some of this....

2008-05-21T21:48:00.003-04:00

http://www.dz-nuts.com/

Sold!

2008-05-19T17:01:00.006-04:00

2006 Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL Size 54

** Does not include Campy Bora wheels - see description

* Campagnolo Record Carbon Rear Derailleur
* Campagnolo Record Carbon Compact Front Derailleur
* Campagnolo Record Carbon Compact Crankset – 172.5mm with 50/34 chain rings
* Campagnolo Record Carbon Ergopower shifters
* Campagnolo Record Ultra Narrow chain
* Zero Gravity Ti brake calipers
* Selle Italia SLR Kit Carbon Flow Saddle – white
* Ritchey WCS Carbon seatpost
* Ritchey WCS 4Axis Aluminum stem 110mm
* Ritchey WCS Aluminum anatomic bars
* (2) Arundel Dave-O Matte Carbon bottle cages
* Look Keo Carbon Ti pedals
* Campagnolo Eurus clincher wheel set
* Campagnolo Chorus steel 11-23 cassette
* Campagnolo skewers
* Continental GP4000 clincher tires
* Approximate weight – 15lbs
*

Cruisin'

2008-05-19T16:52:00.002-04:00

Plan for today called for a 4 hour "easy" ride. Not sure what easy means but with 20+ mph winds on and off for 4 hours, I was pretty spent when I got home and it didn't feel like an easy ride. I guess I'm still feeling the effects of yesterday's ride which consisted of:

4 x 8 on 6 off alternating each minute of work or on time between 260W and 300W.

Time to rebuild the right Campy Ergoshifter as the shifting is no longer crisp, I'm missing gears, and out of the saddle efforts is causing the chain to move down a cog. Once I get the bike fixed and cleaned up, I'm putting her up for sale in order to get a TT bike.

The numbers for today were:

4:06:42
75.63 miles
2,523kj
TSS: 188.7 (.678)
NP: 190W
AVP: 171W

New Shoes - Shimano SH-R300

2008-05-16T15:02:00.010-04:00

My Specialized BG Carbon shoes were showing some signs of wear - BOA tensioning system loosening up during races - so I decided to indulge myself with a pair of Shimano SH-R300 custom fit shoes. These shoes are amazing and they are extremely comfortable, supportive, and transfer all power to the pedals. I left the insoles in the oven for a minute too long and they shrunk, and they are now useless. I removed the insoles from my Specialized and finished the molding process. The insoles that came with the shoes have a built-in odor eating protection and air holes that match the vents in the bottom of the shoe. I will probably order another pair of insoles in the event my feet need a little more ventilation when the temperature reaches 100F.

Ouch!!

2008-05-15T22:22:00.001-04:00

5th place - Georgia Cup Series 7 Road Race

2008-05-11T22:04:00.006-04:00

Saturday almost didn't happen. With 5 minutes to spare, my wife dropped me off on a street corner and I rode a few hundred feet to where the Cat 4/5 35+ riders were assembling for the start of the race. I felt awful having just finished a big meal 60 minutes prior to being dropped off and not being warmed up properly. The official mentioned that we would be neutral for 5 miles in order to get the peloton out of town. What a relief. My frustrated look turned into a smile. Nothing like a neutral roll out to get the juices flowing!

The race was pretty uneventful. Typical race where the peloton brakes going down hill and kills it going up. Don't quite understand the logic but it seems to be all the rage these days. The 5 mile run in to the finish was crazy. Riders were passing on the right in the area that is considered the entrance to a neighborhood. I disagree with the tactic and it borderlines on unethical/illegal. There were two significant hills in the last 1.5 miles that really separated the group. Fortunately, I positioned myself on the right side about 15th back with 10 miles to go and had a clear path over the hills as the weaker riders starting falling off.

At the 1K sign about 3/4 up the last hill, I looked down at my speedometer and we were doing 26mph. This wasn't a roller and it threw me off guard a little. As we crested the hill and safely made it through a major 4-way intersection, the road opened up as we were at the 200m sign but for some reason I just sat on and pedaled as fast as I could. I have no idea why I didn't shift to a smaller gear and jump out of the saddle and go for the win but I didn't. I crossed the finish line in 5th doing 41mph.

Making your own Sports Drink

2008-05-06T14:17:00.005-04:00

As with everything these days, the cost of sports drinks continues to rise. In doing quite a bit of research on the subject, I determined that the best overall drink in my opinion was eLoad or EFS by First Endurance. Reason being they are both made with dextrose aka glucose and requires no additional process to convert the sugar to energy. EFS is loaded with BCAA and quite unnecessary for an on the bike drink and thus the reason why it's $1.60 per bottle.

I've been using the recipe below for over 6 months and give it "two thumbs up" for taste, convenience, and cost savings. The recipe is almost identical to that of eLoad Heat Endurance.

My recipe is based on using NOW Foods brand dextrose as ratios I’ve listed below are based on their dextrose that weighs 4g per 1.25 tsp.

For 20 oz bottle mix the following for a 6.9% carb solution: (cost is approximately $0.43 / 20 oz bottle which includes postage for dextrose)

13 tsp or 4 tbs +1 tsp of dextrose
Just under ¼ tsp of salt (590mg)
1/16 tsp of NuSalt (162mg of potassium chloride)
¼ tsp to ½ tsp of Kool-Aid powder – the amount is dependent upon how strong of a taste you require/desire

For 24 oz bottle mix the following for a 6.6% carb solution: (cost is approximately $0.48 / 24 oz bottle which includes postage for dextrose)

15 tsp or 5 tbs of dextrose
¼ tsp of salt (590mg)
1/16 tsp of NuSalt (162mg of potassium chloride)
½ tsp+ of Kool-Aid powder – the amount is dependent upon how strong of a taste you require/desire

Prior to switching, I was using First Endurance EFS and eLoad Heat Endurance and the cost per 24oz bottle was $1.60 and $1.39 respectively. Think of it this way, at 5000 miles per year, you are probably consuming a bottle every 20 miles or 250 bottles over the 5000 miles. At $1.60/bottle x 250 bottles, you are spending $400 on sports drink. Based on the recipe above and assuming you find the dextrose local and don’t have to pay shipping, you are spending $0.34/bottle x 250 = $85 or a savings of $315 that you can put towards carbon wheels!!!

New 5 sec power personal best

2008-05-05T12:09:00.004-04:00

I headed out on Sunday afternoon at around 1:30PM with the temperature hovering around 82F. A perfect day to be on the bike with a slight breeze and low humidity. The plan called for 3.5 hours of hard riding so I headed to the lake which means plenty of hills. With this being the 3rd day of long sustained efforts, I decided to wake up the legs with a short sprint and see what I had left after having ridden 2.5 hours. I was quite surprised as I haven't been doing any sprint work and my legs were pretty tired plus I didn't go all out, but my 5 second wattage set a new personal best at 1144W.

The rest of the ride was uneventful and resulted in the following #'s:

Duration: 3:09:40 (3:14:50)
Work: 2150 kJ
TSS: 189.5 (intensity factor 0.776)
Norm Power: 217
VI: 1.15
Pw:HR: 9.29%
Pa:HR: 1.95%
Distance: 61.108 mi

Min Max Avg

Power: 0 1168 190 watts
Heart Rate: 83 160 138 bpm
Cadence: 29 141 90 rpm
Speed: 2.3 38.8 19.4 mph

More 4x8's

2008-05-05T12:03:00.002-04:00

Plan for Saturday was 4X8' on @ 285W with 5 minutes between intervals as follows:

0 -1 minute: easy
1 - 2 minute: 385W
2 - 3 minutes: easy
3 - 4 minutes: 385W
4 - 5 minutes: easy

Feeling some residual fatigue from my hour ride the day before, I bagged the 385W intervals after the set of 8' in favor of easy riding. I dropped the wattage back on my final set of 8' in order to complete the 2 hard intervals.

1st 8' interval: 284W avg
2nd 8' interval: 278W avg
3rd 8' interval: 281W avg
4th 8' interval: 272W avg

Zone 2 for 1 hour

2008-05-05T11:52:00.002-04:00

Friday called for an hour ride in Zone 2 or a power range of 213-238W. My legs started out a little heavy and it took about 15 minutes to get into a breathing rhythm but I managed 244W NP and 239W AVG power for hour. Average speed was 21.7 and distance traveled was 21.704 miles.

Transition week

2008-04-30T11:17:00.005-04:00

My plan usually consists of 3 weeks on, with the third week in the block being the longest/most difficult of the block. The 4th week isn't a true rest week but one where the volume is reduced but the intensity is still up. The 4th week in the block is when supercompensation takes place.

I'm currently in the 4th week of the block and will start adding about 4 - 6 hours of additional time per week starting this Saturday. 3 months of indoor trainer work has me ready to get outside, especially now that the temps are hitting in the low to mid 80's.

Workout today called for 5X1 on 2 off at SMSP wattage or above 380W.

Say hello to the new Cat 4....

2008-04-30T09:02:00.003-04:00

I completed my 10th race a few weeks ago and was waiting to upgrade after the state criterium championships. Now that the race is behind me, I decided to submit my upgrade request which was accepted with no problem. I'll be competing in several Georgia Cup races in May and June and they run a combined 4/5 race which means being listed as a Cat 4 will help me towards my Cat 3 upgrade should I place in the top 3.

Tempo with a little LT thrown in

2008-04-28T10:45:00.005-04:00

My next race will be May 10th at the Series 7 road race in Cumming, GA. This will be sort of a homecoming as we used to live in Cumming, GA for about 8 years prior to moving back to SC and my parents and brother still live in the area at Big Canoe, GA.

Nothing special about the road race but after doing 2 months of short intervals, I need some time in the saddle in order to stay in the pack and hopefully contend for the sprint at the finish.

The plan called for a 2 hour hard road ride with at least 30 minutes of MSP/SMSP thrown in. Just to clarify, SMSP is basically L5-L6 and MSP is L4. I decided to do all MSP as my criterium racing schedule is pretty much over.

I'm not sure if it was being outside on the road or just trying to get the ride in before the rain, but my average speed for the 1.75 hour ride was 20.6 mph, a little higher than anticipated. I cut the ride short by about 15 minutes as the rain started picking up and I had some family obligations that I needed to get ready for.

Pretty good ride with about 40 minutes of L4 work and the rest tempo.

Saturday workout results

2008-04-28T10:37:00.002-04:00

The training plan called for 3x8' @ 280-290W with 5 minutes between each interval. The plan for the 5 minutes between each interval looked something like this:

0 -1 minute: easy
1 - 2 minutes: 340 - 365W
2 - 3 minutes: easy
3 - 4 minutes: 340W - 365W
4 - 5 minutes: easy

I performed the first 8 minute interval at an average wattage of 283W with the 2 minutes of SMSP recorded as 344W and 349W respectively. For the 2nd interval, my average wattage was 288W with the 2 minutes of SMSP recorded as 324W and 346W respectively. I could tell I was fading going into the 3rd interval and only produced 269W for the 8 minutes and 335W and 353W for the 2 minutes of SMSP.

Not bad but not where I wanted the numbers to be.